Making the switch from Windows XP/7 environments to Windows 8/8.1 can be difficult for educators, students and parents as they can find the differences annoying and at times, less intuitive. However, installing the following tweaks on Windows 8/8.1 environments can make the transition easy, saving time and decreasing resistance to change.
Use the quicklinks below to find the desired solution(s):
Use the quicklinks below to find the desired solution(s):
Windows 8 Start Menu
Start Menu 8 (created by Iobit) brings the Start Menu back to Windows 8/8.1 PCs for free!
Simply download and install Start Menu 8 to:
- Have a Windows 8 Start Menu
- Have the option to skip the Windows 8 Metro start page, allowing users to boot directly to the Windows 8 desktop
- Easily switch between Metro and Desktop interfaces
- Access both everyday and Metro apps at click of a button
- Quickly access This PC/My Computer, Control Panel, Devices and Printers and change default programs.
- Customise the layout of Start Menu functions, buttons and colour schemes (see the images below)
FileSearchEX
Windows 8/8.1 can be rather annoying as it lacks the original user-friendly search capabilities of Windows XP/Vista/7. FileSearchEX (created by GOFF Concepts) is the perfect solution as it allows searching for:
FilesSearchEX can be downloaded for free (a trial edition that continues to function after the trial period has expired) and paid from here.
- Files and folders
- Characters/words within files
- Files/folders by date/size/type/etc.
FilesSearchEX can be downloaded for free (a trial edition that continues to function after the trial period has expired) and paid from here.
This PC/My Computer Desktop Shortcut
One of the most annoying Windows 8/8.1 features (or lack thereof) is that there is no ‘My Computer’ icon on the Windows Desktop!
In Windows 7 and Vista, users could simply go to the Start menu, right-click on 'My Computer' and select ‘Show on Desktop’, however this cannot be done in Windows 8.
Therefore, click here to access easy to follow steps to create a 'This PC/My Computer' icon on the Windows 8 Desktop.
In Windows 7 and Vista, users could simply go to the Start menu, right-click on 'My Computer' and select ‘Show on Desktop’, however this cannot be done in Windows 8.
Therefore, click here to access easy to follow steps to create a 'This PC/My Computer' icon on the Windows 8 Desktop.
Shutdown Button
Regardless of whether users are on the Windows Desktop or Metro Start screen, Windows 8/8.1 users are required to go through a number of steps just to shutdown/restart a device.
Fortunately, there’s an easy way to create shortcuts for the shutdown and restart functions that then require only one click/touch to shutdown/restart a PC.
Follow the steps on this page to easily create shortcuts for both actions. |